INTERMISSION!
by The Sayler
Summary: The story in-between chapters 55 and 56 of ANGEL. FAX and Mylan. Now complete.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Okay, guys, you know that time space in between chapters 55 and 56 of Angel? Well, don't read this if you haven't read Angel yet. READ IT NOW! *********

**Done? Or at least up to the chapters above? Kay. This is the 'intermission' between those two chapters. FAX & DAX! Though Fax is better, we all know that. **

**I might make this into a multiple-chapter thing, and I'll try to make it as accurate as possible towards the book. **

"I'm here for you," he said, pulling away from my lips.

My breathing had accelerated, and I was finding myself drawn unwillingly to his stupid ocean eyes, contrasting with his stupid tan face.

"-nk you." I finished breathlessly, trying to sound casual, as if one of the most thrilling kisses I'd ever had hadn't just happened. Um… not counting Fang's kisses… of course.

I heard the bell of the restaurant door opening, and I tried to quickly pull away from him, the spell broken. But Dylan held me tighter, unwilling to let go. I tried to conjure up a flash of annoyance like I normally would, but I couldn't. Not with him holding me. Like this.

I turned my head jerkily towards the noise, and saw a murderous-looking Fang. His dark face scowled and he ran through the parking lot, pushed off, and shot off into the sky. His gang and the flock walked out the door a few seconds later, their faces unreadable.

"Let go." I pushed Dylan off, and though my heart was racing, I made my face turn commanding. Maya glared at me, and then looked worriedly at the sky. I ignored her, not wanting to see how obviously she felt towards _once-mine_ tall, dark, and recently single leader of the Fang Gang.

Ugh.

Nudge walked up behind me. I turned, and she whispered anxiously, "The… the windows were glass."

Right. The windows that Dylan had just smooched me in front of. I wanted to put my hands in my face, and just sink through the earth. I felt horrible.

"Maybe you should…uh…" Iggy looked at me. Well, he turned his head in my general direction. Same thing.

Angel looked at me sadly, shaking her head like a wise old lady. It was an odd look for a 7-year-old.

"Should what? Go after him?" I hissed down at Iggy and Nudge.

They just managed to look frightened at my defensive tone. I groaned silently in frustration, and took several self-conscious steps away from Dylan. I couldn't even look at him.

Looking around at the two groups standing feet away from each other, I set my face into a mask of indifference. My feet pushed off suddenly at the asphalt and I launched myself into the sky, flapping towards the dark speck landing in the distance.


	2. Chapter 2

"Fang!" I shouted. "FANG!" The wind took away my voice, but I heard the desperation clearly.

He was sitting on a rock, facing away from me. His dark, annoyingly-short hair looked ruffled, and even that made my heart jump.

I hated having to chase him. _Before_ we didn't chase at all. We were always on the same page. No one was hurt.

Not so much anymore. The thing that upset me the most was the fact that he approved of _Maya_. He had called her a unique individual. He looked at her the way he used to look at me. My gut felt like a rock every time I even saw her.

Fang turned. His eyes were closed off, discouraging me. Why couldn't this be one of those stories where the guy loves you no matter what? Where the girl the character thinks the guy loves is really just a decoy. When he isn't a jerk.

Instead, I got to have him step all over my heart, probably breaking some pretty vital blood vessels. And he didn't even seem to care anymore.

_But Max! _ A voice said from deep inside me (No, idiot, not _the_ Voice, _my_ voice). _Why else would he storm off if he didn't still care?_

I landed hard, so I ducked and rolled into a crouched position. I straightened, and strode over to Fang, my eyes blinking to avoid tears.

_Tears? _I am so pathetic.

"C'mon," I said to his back. "We gotta go back to the flock and your little, um… gang."

He was silent, like typical Fang. I was forced to grab his shoulder, ignoring the tightly coiled muscle tendons in his neck, and spin him around. Well, I attempted to. His neck snapped to face me, and the fire in his eyes was enough to make me let go of him like it burned me.

"Max. Why can't you just leave me alone?"

Those eight words hurt me as much as the entire conversation we had had earlier today. You know, when he praised Maya and said Dylan was a _newbie_. My mouth dropped open. I swallowed. "Okay. Fine."

I turned and launched myself into the sky, pushing myself so hard I accidentally went into super-speed mode.

I nosedived to the restaurant, and saw the flock and Fang's gang still standing separately. I dropped, and spoke to the flock. "I think he's coming."

"Good," Maya said, loosening her face from the mixture of anger and worry she had on previously. "'Cause we have research to do."

"About what?" I asked blankly, forgetting that a) I had been talking just to the flock, and b) how pissed I was at Maya.

"Um. The _Doomsday Group_?" Maya replied, the word 'duh' accenting every syllable.

"Right."

I tried not to look at Dylan, but I did. His face was, unlike Fang's, easily read. His eyebrows were set over his clear eyes in a determined way, and the pain was visible in the pools of blue (_pools of blue?_ I need to shut up, quickly_)_. He was staring right at me.

I looked away, into the sky. I saw, to my surprise, Fang, flying like a lithe panther. He landed, the speed making him stumble adorably, but towards Maya.

He turned to me, and said quietly, "Max. I'm sorry."

I stared stiffly at the ground, ignoring him. "Let's go see where we can find the Doomsday Group," I said to the flock. They looked back with varying levels of enthusiasm.

Let's do this.


	3. Chapter 3

"I can't find it anywhere!" I said in frustration, looking at the Google page blankly.

"Well, we could always just see if the Fang Gang found anything," Gazzy said reasonably.

"Fine. I'll go." I stood up and walked out, 'cause I'm just cool like that.

"Yeah?" I heard Maya's voice before she opened the door. "Oh. What do you want?" Snarky.

"We were wondering if you found the HQ yet." I kept my voice robotic, and I avoided the brown eyes, exactly like mine.

"We did." Fang walked up from behind her. She smiled at him.

"Where is it then?" I asked impatiently. I was tired of playing this game.

"Paris."

I nodded. "Awesome." I walked away, striding down the hallway. What a long conversation _that_ was.

"Max!" Fang's low voice sounded from right behind me.

I practically jumped out of my skin. "Jesus, Fang!"

Normally this would be the part where I punch him in the face with my quick reflexes, but my mind had been too preoccupied.

"Max. Please. This is purely business. We need to fight the bigger threat."

"I _know_," I said, anger boiling up. "Do _you_ think _I'm_ the one that thinks this isn't for business?"

"I'm sorry if this is so confusing! I just want to kill off the Doomsday Group!"

"We _all_ do. But why did you have to bring my freaking _clone_?"

"Well, _I_ don't understand, either. Why do you think that Dylan…?" His voice trailed off, and his eyes looked right at me, piercing through my touchy demeanor.

"He's a nice guy! He's _loyal_, too," I said, directly pointing to the fact that he _left_ me.

"Look. We really can't discuss this now."

I crossed my arms. "Of course. You're too _busy_."

"Calm down, Max!"

"_Why_?"

"Just ignore whatever little romantic fantasies you've been having- and man up!"

My eyes went wide. That was below the belt. I think Fang know it, too, because he winced and stepped towards me, his eyes apologetic. He started to say something, but closed his mouth again. Then he walked away, with that way he has.

I ran in the other direction, my face burning. Halfway across a street, Dylan saw me. He was getting coffee.

"One-year-olds don't get caffeine!" I smiled at him wryly.

"This one does." He looked serious. "Did you find anything?"

"Yeah. Headquarters are in Paris."

"Alright. Let's call Nino." He stood, and we walked back to the rest of the flock.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I just want to thank everyone SO MUCH for the reviews. Even getting a few is good enough for me. Anyways. Sorry for a lacking in FAX. Dylan is such a sap. **

**Unfortunately, I made a vow (not literally, but…) to have it make sense with the book. However, I'm thinking about writing a new story, related to Max Ride. Tell me what you think! Doesn't take long to review. Voice your opinion! I WANT TO KNOW YOUR INNER THOUGHTS. Pretend I said that in the least creepy way possible. And I know this is a really short piece of fanfiction, so you didn't have **_**that**_** much of an opportunity to get a feel for my writing style, but I hope it gives you a vague idea, and you're pleased by it. I hope.**

"Yeah. In like, a half hour. Thanks! Bye." Iggy hung up and turned to face me. "The jet's coming to take us to Paris. We need to get Fang's friends at this little field nearby in an hour or so."

"We got that." I looked at the clock. We'd have almost _too_ much time.

I walked with the flock, though I felt separate. They were all chattering and laughing, and Gazzy was verbally contemplating challenging the Fang Gang to a game of poker. Uh-oh.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. Dylan looked down at me with troubled eyes. "You okay?"

Normally, I'd tell whoever asked me that to get off my back and to mind their business. But Dylan really looked concerned about me. It felt kind of good. "Yeah, m'fine."

"You can tell me anything, Max." He looked so serious. "I just want you to know that."

I didn't respond, using the fact that we had just reached at the field the jet would arrive at to walk faster, and check Gazzy and Iggy's pockets for any possible explosives they were hiding.

While I sternly scolded Iggy for bringing an illegal dangerous _highly explosive _liquid that he'd somehow gotten ahold of, I could feel Fang's eyes burning into me from where his gang had gathered. It made me feel uncomfortable, and reminded me of fresh bruises and scars inside.

A hand slipped inside of mine as the jet lowered out of the sky. Angel looked up at me with an absurd amount of kind understanding for a 7-year old. I stiffly walked to the hatch, fighting the urge to just fly away, away from the confusion and pain and sense of duty. Away from everything. Away from _now_. Away to when there was always a team of two: me and Fang.

But I sat on the comfortable leather seat in the corner of the plane.

"I rested my head drowsily against a soft pillow, feeling the muffled roar of the jet's engines. In just a few short hours, so much had come together…" –_Angel: A Maximum Ride Novel_


End file.
